Notesong's Story
Allegiances Leader: Newstar (White She-Cat With Pale Amber Eyes) Deputy: Novamist (Black And White Spotted Tom With Ocean Blue Eyes) Medicine Cat: Secretsoul (Gray She-Cat With Brown Eyes) Medicine Cat: Hazelbranch (Brown Tortoise-Shell Tom With Hazel Eyes) Warriors: Rainfall (Black Tortoise-Shell Tom With Blue Eyes And Raindrop Patterns Running Down His Forehead) Ashbreeze (Orange And Black Tom With A Grumpy Personality) Fallensky (Orange Tabby Tom With Amber Eyes) Harryscar (Black Tom With Green Eyes And A Scar Running Down His Forehead) Howlheart (Gray Tabby With Shaggy Fur And Glowing Red-Yellow Eyes) Otterpool (Brown She-Cat With Bright Aqua Eyes) Icefur (White She-Cat With Ice Colored Eyes) Jaywatcher (Blue-Gray She-Cat With Amber Eyes) Notesong (Gray She-Cat Tabby With White On Her Paws And Blue Eyes) Apprentices: Fuzzypaw (Brown Tom With Blue Eyes) Yellowpaw (Pale Yellow She-Cat With Magenta Eyes) Foxpaw (Crimson Tom With One Amber Eye, Uses A Vine To Hide His Lost Eye) Harepaw (Blueish-Gray Tom With Magenta Eyes) Morningpaw (Orange With Black Spots And Blue-Green Eyes) Queen Cats: ''' Icefur (White She-Cat With Ice Colored Eyes, Kits: Fuzzypaw, Foxpaw, Harepaw, And Yellowpaw) '''Elders: Emberrunner (A Scarlet Tom With Pale Green Eyes) Cats Outside Clans: Addertail (A Tan She-Cat With A Big Stripe Running From Her Spine To Her Forehead, Her Eyes Are Bright Red) Boxhead (A Box-Headed Tom With A Amber Eye And Red Eye) Slitherhowl (Sliver Tom With Snake-Like Patterns Running Down His Spine) Silentsong (Father Of Notesong, Unknown Features.) Lostsoul (Black cat with bright yellow eyes) A mysterious creature (found later in the fan fic, unknown features.) Prologue Pain thrashes Silentsong as the dagger-like fangs crunch deeply into his bones. The cat wails and cries for help but Notekit lay there, terrified. "N-Notek-it!" He shouts, "You must leave! You'll be next if you don't run!" Silentsong tumbles to the hard stone ground as the creature throws its massive paws at him. "Where do I run?" cried Notekit, panicking as she saw her father tumble to the ground. She stood hopeless on breathless words from her father. "Somewhere, away from here... not here... not in your mum's den... away from here," Silentsong said. "Go...Leave!" And with only one word out of his breathless mouth, he tumbles to the ground once more, eyes facing Notekit. "Your mum would've been so proud... to see you... grow up." And he lay there, slowly fading to the shadows of Starclan. "NO!!!! DAD!!!!!!!!" Notekit lay there, facing her father's eyes, crying harder than ever.He's dead! Now what?! She thought. But there was no more time to waste, the creature sprang back up to its massive paws, and charged towards her. She turns around to the creature dashing towards her, and starts to run as fast as her little paws can carry her. C'mon Notekit! Think! She dodged the creature's paws trying to rip her face off. Without a moment to lose, she sprung into a bush in front of her and waited for the creature to pass by. It sniffed all sides of the bush, but heard mumbling in the distance, and decided to scurry off searching the woods for the mumbling. You were stupid to even watch your father die... ''she thought, "I couldn't do anything to help him, I'm too weak." She jumped out of the bush, looked around for any sign of the creature, and she took off into the forest, ''Turn back... He may still live...Turn back... ''ignoring the repeating of her voice inside her head, she padded through the forest. Lost to her thoughts she nearly stumbled over a black figure who lay still, eyes focused on hers. "Well? What are you doin' down 'ere in 'te middle of 'te forest when it's a quarter to sunrise?" The figure said, slowly walking towards Notekit. "Wh-- Who are you? Are you a cat as well?", She replied curiously. "Can 'ye tell? Of course I am! A clan cat if you ask me. Name's Rainfall, And 'yer name?" He asked back in a weird tone. "Umm-- N-Notekit..." She didn't like the tone of voice Rainfall used as he asked her these questions. "Notekit eh? Nice name if 'ye ask me. Anyway, best you'd get back 'te 'yer clan, 'yer mum and dad are probably be best if they know where 'ye are...", As he almost finished his phrase, Notekit got up and interrupted. "I---" She sighs,"My mum and dad, they are--- dead." "What?", He gasped out as he started to walk away from Notekit. "They both died, I couldn't do anything to help them, It's too long to explain." She sat down, eyes watering. "Hey, dun cry... It's not so bad, me parents died too." He padded back towards Notekit. "Really? How? Was it like my dad?" She asked. "Murder. Happen mysteriously back at 'te clan, happens more often now, if 'ye ask me." Notekit stood back up, looking more mad than sad, then looked up at Rainfall and sighed,"I just don't get it, why me? Me?" "Come closer, I dun want other cats to know we're 'ere..." He said mysteriously. And he explained all of the murder, death, and mystery. And how the cats' clueless ideas on what has been happening. "Best we'd head back to 'te clan!!! I never arrive late for sunrise meals!" And he leapt to his paws, and started to sprint out of the forest. "Hey! Rainfall! Wait up! WAIT UP!!!" She trembled to her feet, and sprinted after Rainfall. As the bushes faded and the tree's twigs stopped hitting Notekit's face, they walked into a beautiful meadow filled with snow-white daisies, sky-blue tulips, and fluffy dandelions. She stared at the beauty for so long, all of her worries started to fade as a feeling of happiness burst out of her like never before. She tumbled on the dandelions and watched as they flew into the skies, and ran in circles for nearly half an hour. "Welcome Notekit, to Newclan.", He said as he watched Notekit smiled widely at him. "It's amazing! C'mon! Let's go!" And Notekit ran to the clan as Rainfall followed. But as Notekit ran, she stumbled into a den filled with emerald shards painted on the walls and stone covering the ceiling. Rainfall found Notekit and the leader padded out of the shadows to greet her. "Welcome, to Newclan, who may you be?", The leader said as Notekit looked up curiously at the leader, for this has been her first time she's seen a leader. "Notekit..." She replied. The leader drop frozen. "N-Name's Newstar...", And the leader took back off into the shadows. ''Wow, first time meeting a leader and then she has to leave, how rude. And she left the leader's den in disappointment. "Hi there!" A shaggy black tom said as she was murmuring to herself."I'm Howlpaw! And you?" Howlpaw sounded as though he wanted to play with her."OH! C'mon! Speech time!" And he ran to the other cats surrounding the leader's den. "Notekit will now be known as... Notepaw!!!", And all of the cats greeted Notepaw as she stepped down from the high-rock. In the distance, she saw Rainfall and asked,"Is his all.. a dream?" "Could be... In 'yer dreams!" He chuckled,"Follow me, Imma show you where 'ye'll sleep." As they walked, Notepaw fell to the floor, and closed her eyes. He glanced down at Notepaw and smiled, not knowing what to say. He padded out of the apprentice's den to rest outside. She bit herself as she slept, trying to figure out if she was dreaming. But she was too weak to keep it up, and thought I hope it isn't... But she didn't care if it was a dream or not... for now... This was the best dream she ever had. But she was not thinking twice... Chapter One Notesong wakes up with a bad start, thinking about her past. She padded out of the den with a long, big yawn. "Good morning Howlheart ..." as she walked right by him. He looked up at Notesong with a grin, and looked back up into the morning sky."Beautiful day, am I right?" He said as he lay in the soft patches of grass. "Yeah, It's so... pretty. I-- never imagined it this beautiful out." She replied in a soft tone. "Probably 'cause you don't wake up this early in the morning!" He laughed as he watched Notesong lay down next to him. "This might even BE my first time I've ever woke up this early, and-- umm--- Howlheart, what's that right there?!" She tilted Howlheart's head over to where she was pointing, and with a gasp, he got up and screamed, "GET OUT OF THE DENS!!! UP AHEAD!!! VOLCANO!!!!" And without a moment to lose, the cats scrambled out of the dens as quick as possible. "Where is it?" A cat asked in panic. "When will it hit?!" Another cat screamed out. "How will we find a way out?!!?!?" All of them panicked until, the leader came out of the den. "All please calm down! There is no need to panic." She spoke in a calm voice,"Everyone, now! To the woods! We will be safer there." And the cats ran from their meadow, into the woods where Notesong can picture her father dying. Then, she slipped into a mud pile and fell. Howlheart stopped and ran toward Notesong. "Ok, Not cool Notesong!" And he grabbed her by the paw, and pulled her out of the mud."Come on! We need to catch up with the others!" "Ok..." And she looked back, staring at the lava running down from the volcano far behind her,"The lava--- it's-- getting closer!" "I know! Just, come on! Stop standing there, want to get killed?!" And he turned around to catch up with the clan. She finally looked back toward the woods and started to run. "What do we do when we enter the forest, Howlheart?" She asked. "We speak to the leader if we want the answer Notesong, we speak to-- the leader." He gasped in reply. As they started to stop running, they went to a pace to watch the autumn leaves drift from the trees down into piles of yellow, brown, and red. The others looked up as the apprentices jumped into the piles, making the leaves fly in all directions. "We camp here until the lava cools in the clan." The leader said." We'll think about something-- In the future." And all the cats settled down for the night. Howlheart looked at Notesong, suprised and padded toward her to lay down,"Funny isn't it?" She said,"This was the exact same forest where my dad died." She rested her paws into the ground, closing her eyes. "It's very funny the fact that cats babble about that still..." He chuckled. She looked back at Howlheart and said, "I hope it won't be long, that's just-- That's my home," She said with a wide yawn. "Don't worry, it won't be long, not at all." And he rested his head, inching a few steps closer to Notesong."Good night.." And they both sleep in silence. Chapter Two They both woke up with two cats looking down at them,"GET UP!!!" They both said. The first cat was surprisingly fat and the other quite skinny. "Are you stupid?! UP!","Yeah! UP YOU GO!" And they shoved Notesong and Howlheart onto their paws. They were super mean to them, until that second, another cat walked toward them slowly."And?! Who may you two be? What do you want with me!?" She ran toward them and pushed them to the edge of the cliffside. "Ummm--- Where are we?! Who are you?" Notesong was strangled more than Howlheart. Did this cat know her? Or was it just a first-time appearance? Or was it someone she knew before? "No one speaks of her name" The fat one said. "YEAH! NO ONE!" The other said. Then, the she-cat walked up to the two cats, and bumped their heads together,"You, FOOLS! This wasn't the one I was looking for! I wanted--" She lowered her voice,"I want you to find me the leader! Not these pests! GO!!" And they left. "Now.. Introduce yourself." She said. "I'm.. Notesong---" She paused and the cat jumped at her. "WELL, NOTESONG.... So pleased to meet you." She laughed evilly as the red of her eyes stare down at her. "D-- do I know you?!" She questioned. "Maybe, Maybe not. WELL! Come! We must speak.. *In silence, Without your... Boyfriend*" She shouted. "HEY! Wait--- My boyfriend?!!? Whoa!" And she was pulled into a dark, shadowed corner of the cliffside. "Now. Tell me. Did your parents die?" She asked. "Yes?" She replied. "Did you encounter me in a dream?" She continued. "Ummm, All I remember was a white cat walking towards me, not a black one." She said. "Dear, Dear, I'm not black, or white." She said in an evil tone, sharpening her claws. "What do you mean?" "I'm the one you saw! And I'm just about impatient enough to kill you." "Please! Don't! We've only just began the conversation!" And at that moment, the cat fell silent. Then spoke, "Well then, LEAVE! Or else..." She went over closer to Notesong."And don't EVER. Look. For. My. Place.. AGAIN!!!!" And she lowered her paws to the ground, sparks of light fell onto Notesong. And she was right back in the forest with every other cat, and right beside her was Howlheart."What happened?! Who was that? And who were the others beside her?" He kept asking he was almost out of breath. "I-- I don't know the fat one, nor the skinny one, but--- I know the she-cat. In a dream." She said in a calm tone, trying not to wake up the others. "We should--- Ummm- tell the ot----" And then he was interrupted. "No! Don't tell the others! Who knows, she might just be looking for someone." She stopped Howlheart from talking, at least. She walked away from Howlheart, and away from the others. As she walked, she found the same blood trails from when her father died. And there it was. Her father's motionless body, still furry."But... That was so long ago, how can he still... Nevermind." She looked both directions to see if anyone else wanted to stalk her, and looked back down."R-- rest in St--- Starclan d--d--dad" And she couldn't help it. The dramatic memory was too powerful to control her emotions. She fell to the ground next to the body and cried. "Notesong! I've been looking for you everywhere!" He was relieved to see her still alive."Tonight's a full moon..." He whispered. "When?" She wiped the tears as he spoke. "Tonight... I--- I got to go!" And he ran deeper into the woods, and beyond. "Wait! Howlheart! Hold on!" She got up quickly and started to sprint to where Howlheart was running. The sky faded to black and the stars popped out for the young warriors to see. The moon rose out of the horizon. And Howlheart ran faster."Slow down! Please just tell me what's going on!" She couldn't run as fast as Howlheart could, and her heart was pounding on her chest. "No! It's too late! It's--- Already out!!!" He tried not to look. They were in the middle of a mini meadow with a big hill running a few feet up. He ran up the hill, his right paw covering his eyes. "Too late?" She huffed,"For what?!" "... I--- Can't say--- Only magic knows," He removed his paw and cries turned to howls, as his fur grew larger, and teeth sharper. It was too late. She had already found out. "You killed my father." Chapter Three "I-- I'm so sorry Notesong... I never wanted to say." And he stood there fro a moment, on two legs. He was darker than he was before, and only more furrier. His teeth sharper than most cats, and claws extending to almost ground level! He went back to his paws, and looked at Notesong. He looked back, and howled right into the moonlight. "You never told me this place is-- is-- MAGICAL!!!" And she ran towards the woods where she was not seen. Howlheart felt very guilty for forming in front of Notesong, and jumped down from the hill, towards Notesong. She looked at the werewolf-like figure in fright and said,"Get away from me! You--- you creep!!" But he only walked closer."Just, please, stop! Go away from me! HELP!!!" And Howlheart just stood there, not wanting to attack her. He tried to speak but all that came from his mouth were growls and snarls. He sat there crying. "Why don't you just come and kill me!? I can't take this!" She looked so terrified Howlheart could hardly take it. And a word came out of him, "I-- D--don--t ---W--Wan--na Ki---ll --You." He howled. "Why not?! You've already killed someone! Why not just kill the daughter?!" She sobbed as the big, black creature stand in front of her. He looked down and didn't do anything, all he did was watch Notesong covering her eyes with both her left and right paws. "J--ust ---G--go-- B---ba--ck t--to--- C--Camp," He continued,"L--lea--ve --m---me -h---h--here --i--in -P--eac--e."And she took off running back towards the camp, hardly able to talk with all of the terror filling her. "What happened Notesong? We were looking for you everywhere!" Harryscar said, pressing one of his paws on his scar. "Where's Howlheart?! Are you alright?" Secretsoul said as she watched Notesong walk around camp to find the leader. "I---" "I know. Howlheart let me guess?" She spoke. "Yes, Newstar. He--" "Killed your father? Yes." She continued. "How do you know?" "We shall not speak of it, You should go see a medicine cat, you look quite... Wounded." She tried not to tell the way she knew the truth. "But, what about Howlheart?" "Don't worry about him.. my dear... it's just his, Instinct." And she watched Notesong leave the den. She ran where the medicine cats camped and suddenly bumped head-to-head with Harryscar. "OW!" They both said, rubbing their heads. Notesong watched Harryscar get up. "Need some help?" He pulled out his paw. "Umm-- Hee hee.. sure." She blushed as Harryscar pulled her back up. "We have got to stop bumping into each other like this." And he padded away from Notesong. She saw as he walked away with a blush and walked into the bushes where the medicine cats camp. "I told you! She's too young to go out like that!" Seecretsoul spat out. "No she isn't! She's not a kit anymore! She can handle everything on. Her. Own!" Hazelbranch yelled as Notesong giggled in the corner of the den. "I've been looking for you guys..." She spoke. Hazelbranch quickly got up from his paws and ran towards Notesong, "Oh dear, What do we have here? Looks like some wounds that need to be tended, come." And she followed the medicine cat through the piles of marigolds, poppy seeds, and... yew berries?! "Wait, why the yew berries?" She questioned in curiosity. "Well, there have been murders on the loose, never know when you'll need some to stuff 'em into the mouths of those, filthy buggers!" And they walked further into the bushes. "And besides, all these bushes WERE yew berry bushes. Until.. We used up all of the berries." But that moment, he paused and stopped walking."Do you hear that?" He whispered. "What?" She replied in a whisper, not knowing what else to say. "Quick, behind here..." And he shoved her into a pile of rosemary. She coughed as the smell shot right up into her nose. She finally heard it. They were paw steps, and loud sniffing. "All I smell is rosemary and the--- icky smell of mint!" He shouted. "Shush! We're not looking for herbs, we're looking *for the leader!*" The other tom grabbed the fat one by the shoulders, shaking him side to side. "Ok ok I know!" The fat one replied, brushing the other one's paws to the side. Now she knew they weren't nice, they work for the one she talked to, and trying to find the leader. But, do they just want to speak to her? or maybe receive food from where they come from? She jumped out of the rosemary pile and watched as the cats walk out of the den area "Who were those cats?!" Secretsoul asked in terror, looking down at the herbs on the ground. "Some cats." Notesong replied. Chapter Four "Talking about moonlight... What time is it?" She asked, but the medicine cat didn't reply."Well, I guess I'll be going..." "No, wait! Don't leave!" The medicine cat said. "Why not? I'm tired! I haven't slept all day.. well, all NIGHT!" Notesong said, annoyed and tired."Look, I'm tired, I'm tired the fact you never told me, *there was magic in this place!*" The medicine cat didn't look surprised. "Well then, off you go. Take these with you." She handed Notesong a paw-full of marigold. She then left the den and looked at the leader. Where are those cats at? "OW!" And something then pulled her into the darkness. She was knocked out for about ten minutes until she woke up in pain. She was surrounded by the same two cats that she saw the day before. The forest looked different, it was just plain black. She couldn't see anything else, but the eyes of red, amber, and silver staring down at her. "Whe--Where am I?" She asked as her eyes were adjusting to the darkness of the mossy, damp side of the forest. There was no reply. No one spoke, not a word. But one spoke, only one word. "Welcome..." The voice said. "Who are you?!" She asked as the figure looked down at her. "Who am I? HA! You should've never asked..." He replied in an evil tone. "Who are you? Just answer me!" She shouted as hear voice trembled in fear. "I... Am... You're... New..... *future mate!*" He laughed evilly, watching her eyes grow small. She fell over a branch on the tree she was laying on and fell to the hard, cold forest floor. "What did you say?!" She knew the words, she wanted to hear it clearly. "I said: You, are my new... dearest.. friend." And he looked down at her. "Dearest?!" She didn't like the sound of that. "Come.. Dear. Follow me." And he got up on his paws and trotted away without another word. She followed him, not knowing what was going on. The forest seemed to end and the trees shrunk. Where were they? She did not want to know. The trees were far behind her, she grew more curious. She didn't even know this cat! How can she trust someone like this? She ended up in the same cliffside as last time. "Take my paw..." He said. "Why? How can I trust you?" She just wanted to leave, this cat is too much. "JUST TAKE IT!" He shouted enough for the forest to hear. She took his paw. And wasn't found from then on. She was transported to a more pretty side of the forest. She looked up at the tom and said, "Well, at least it wasn't tha---" and the tom pounced on her. "So... Tell me about yourself," He said, in a romantic way. "Well... Uh... Where to start?" She said as she was still pinned to the ground. She explained everything, from the beginning, to where they are right now. She just wanted to know his name. Finally, the tom spoke. "Very interesting story," He continued,"Name's Lostsoul...." And he leaned down. "Hi... Lostsoul, have we met before?" She blushed as the questions still floated in her head. "No.. But... Now you do." Lostsoul finally did it. He couldn't help it. Notesong didn't expect it. They kissed. Chapter Five Harryscar and Howlheart ended up in a corner of the forest where both of them bumped into four cats. Of course, they found that they weren't looking for these cats. They looked like young apprentices. "How'd you do there?" The first said. "Are you new?" The second one spoke. "Where do you guys come from?" The third one asked. "Hi!" The fourth one shouted. "Oh, hi there! Aww... aren't they the cutest little kits? Aren't they?" Harryscar's eyes widened at the sight of the apprentices. Howlheart didn't seem to care, he was looking for Notesong. Not a bunch of apprentices. "Can we help?" The first one was looking forward to helping. "Can we?" The second asked. "We know the way around this area of the forest!" The fourth and third said. "Please?!" They all begged with their eyes so big, Harryscar couldn't take it. Howlheart just started to walk away from all of them and yelled,"NO!" And he just kept walking. The others followed, even the apprentices. Howlheart grew annoyed as the others kept talking and talking and soon, he stopped walking. "OH MY GOD! WOULD YOU ALL JUST SHUT UP FOR ONCE!?!?" He eventually started running away from the others, including Harryscar. Howlheart was looking down on the forest floor, the paw prints... He found them! Now he will know where Notesong went missing. He looked back up and saw the others, still slowly following behind him."Ugh...." And he moved forward. He found the trees shrinking, he was back where he was when he and Notesong were captured by a bunch of murderous cats."No... Where are you?! Oh no. Oh no Oh no!" He sat there, looking hopeless. "What's this?" Harryscar found weird writings on the stone cliffside and pushed his paws on it."It doesn't look like it does an---" BOOM! He disappeared. "Where did he go?!" Howlheart just saw what happened. The apprentices weren't there, though. They must've gone with him. He walked to the writings and placed all paws on the center. It didn't work. Now he felt even more hopeless."Oh, how will I get her back?" He walked away from the writings and sat at the edge of the cliffside."If Harryscar comes back with he alive, I'm going to kill him." Harryscar looked around, still feeling stunned from the teleportation when he pushed his paws on the mysterious writings. The apprentices were far up ahead of him and he felt like falling asleep. "Hey over here! I think I found.. her?" They all looked behind a small bush where they found Notesong, but she was with someone else. She slept next to someone they didn't know. They jumped out of the bush quietly and walked slowly up to Notesong. "Notesong! Can you hear me!?" Harryscar looked down at her, but she didn't reply. Instead, the figure rolled over towards Harryscar. "Hello." And this wasn't Notesong at all. With a frightened gasp, he stepped back. The figure got onto his paws and ran toward Harryscar. "Looking for the girl, I presume?" He chuckled evilly. "Yes! Where is she?" Harryscar spat out. "In my clutches..." He started to laugh as his bright yellow eyes faced Harryscar's."Why do you ask?" "I'm here to get her back." The figure laughed so hard, he could hardly control it. "Do you even know where I kept her?" He said as he laughed. "In your clutches, you said." Harryscar replied in a worrying tone. "Incorrect! I lied... She's with me... Somewhere." The figure didn't even bother to give Harryscar hints."She won't come with you... you filthy.. Mouse-brained... PEST!" He shot out sparks that transported him back to the cliffside where Howlheart was still waiting. He looked at Harryscar, quite happy to NOT see Notesong by his side. "I expected something to happen when you arrived," He continued."I guess I'll go find her. Instead of you!" He jumped on the writings and was gone. Harryscar waited for almost two hours until he returned with Notesong by his side. Harryscar looked down at Notesong, then asked,"Is she alright?" He was just happy to see her again. "Who knows... she looks, weak." Howlheart replied. "Let's get her back." Harryscar walked out of the evening sunlight. They walked all the way back to the campsite and the cats looked at them oddly. "Where's Rainfall?" Chapter Six "Rainfall?" The elder looked at Howlheart and Harryscar in surprise,"He's been missing." "How long? Please tell us, we need to know where he went missing." Both Howlheart and Harryscar looked at each other, worried. "I... I don't know where he went off to. Somewhere too far away for me to even remember!" And the elder continued,"As long as you guys aren't... up to something." He whispered. "Nope, we just are... looking for him, heheh... but, he's not here!" And both Harryscar and Howlheart brought Notesong into the warriors den/area. It was really dark out, not even a star on sight. Howlheart looked down at Notesong and sat down to lay by her."Good night, Notesong." "Good.. Night." Notesong replied. Howlheart smiled, relieved to see her talking. They slept right when the leader came out and shouted,"WE MUST HEAD FURTHER INTO THE FOREST!!! NOW, ALL OF YOU! GO!!!" She shouted so loud she could harldy breathe. "Why?" They all asked in a curious tone. "Just.. .go... head further... into the forest." She continued,"Go... NOW! We don't want to wake up with lava beneath our paws!" They all got up from their places, and headed further into the forest. "Howlheart..." Notesong said. "Yes?" He replied in a cool tone. "W-What happened... last night?" She asked. "Um.. It's.. Well.. Ok I'll tell you." He continued,"At cat, he never bothered to tell his name, well... You kissed him." He couldn't explain the night before. "Kissed?!" She gasped. "Calm down, I mean, come on... It's just a. Kiss." He looked down at Notesong. "I know. But... I didn't even know this cat!" She just got up, and ran to the others. "What?!" He ran after her. He slowed down to catch his breath, and a pair of eyes looked down at him. He stared at them in fear, and ran closer to the others. And the eyes moved into his face. "AH!" He shouted. Black tentacle-like arms grabbed him on the paws, and pulled him down into the ground. "Howlheart!!!" Notesong ran back to Howlheart, while the others never noticed. She looked down at him, still being forced into the ground,"What do I do!?" She looked back, and turned to him. "You.. Won't Mess With HIM!!!!" She grabbed his ears, and pulled them up. "Ow!" He said. The tentacles let go, and turned to Notesong. They collapsed on her, creating a shield so no one could reach her. "No!" He jumped on the tentacles' surface, and scratched it. It slapped him to the ground. He got back up, and shouted "I'm not giving up... NOT NOW!!!" And jumped over the tentacles to find a crack to get into. He jumped into one, and saw Notesong. "I thought you'd leave me." She said. "From now on, we stick together... forever." He replied. They both looked at each other and smiled as the chaos surrounded them. Notesong looked around,"How do we get out?!" She asked. "Oh no.." He pointed at the tentacle, and it grabbed him by the neck. She couldn't do anything, just as she started to run, the tentacles grabbed her by the feet. "You should've know..." A loud voice chuckled. "Not another voice!!" She screamed. "QUIET!" The voice hissed and choked Notesong harder. He leaned down to her, and said,"Fine day isn't it? Wonderful to just... die." She looked at the figure, and gasped."Are you?!" She couldn't say it. "I'm everything." He laughed evilly. She couldn't believe her eyes, after all of this. The elders' stories were true. And this wasn't a cat at all. It was something, never to be told. "No! You can't take me!" She said as he still looked down at her. "I can do anything to you.. If I want to free you, I can... If I want to kill you... I can." Chapter Seven "You're not killing anyone! Not even him!" She shouted at the figure. "So brave, so... stupid!" He grabbed a tentacle by swiping his paw toward Notesong, and choked her enough so she couldn't speak. He turned away from Notesong to look at Howlheart."And you?" He laughed. "I..." Howlheart said as his head was forced to look down."I.." "Want me to let her go?" He asked. "Yes! Please! Set me free too!!" Howlheart forced his head up to look at Notesong, then was pushed back down. The figure laughed looking at the two,"I know just what to do with you..." He looked at one direction while his other eyes faced Howlheart. "Let us go." She said. "Are you sure?" He replied. "Just let us go!" She struggled to break free. "No one... I repeat... NO ONE! Tries to escape this... prison," He continued," I can let you go, as long as you give me something in return." He paused. "What is that, something?!" Howlheart couldn't hold his breath. He was yet still strangled by the force of the tentacle. "Something I didn't get last time, something I never GOT WHILE STILL BANISHED IN THIS... PITIFUL WORLD!!!!" He shouted louder than the two expected. "N-not me right?" Notesong looked up. "Of course not you. Not even the both of you." He chuckled as his throat swelled in madness."Find this, cat for me, and I'll reward you." "How can we trust you?!" They both said. "I'll give you this.." He showed a strange rock-like crystal to them,"If you find what I've asked for." And he and the tentacles faded as if nothing even happened. They looked around and realized, they aren't being strangled. They were supposed to look for something, but who or what was it? They only wanted to know until they find it. "So, where are the others?" Notesong walked away from Howlheart, looking around for any sign of the others. It was just too dark. The forest grew dark though, it wasn't even midnight. The cold winds blew both of their pelts from one side to side, causing them to shiver. "I don't know." He finally replied,"Besides, we won't be able to find them now, who knows what might sneak up on us!" "Y--You're probably right." She ran back to Howlheart with a long, big sigh. She saw him looking up at something, but she didn't see it. It was like he was looking at something no one else could see."Howlheart, what are you looking at?" She looked back up, and finally saw it. It was a cat. It's black body pushed itself from on tree to the other. And who knows where he went. "We're not going to be alone tonight." He said mysteriously. He was right, more than one cat was gliding the foggy covered trees. Notesong dropped to the floor, feeling sick. She couldn't take all of this madness. All the magic, romance, or maybe it was just the beginning of life. Life of magic perhaps. "Notesong, you ok?" Howlheart finally caught her laying on the ground, looking pale-faced. She didn't reply, she looked dead."Come, follow me." He grabbed Notesong by the paw, and took her into a corner of the forest where she fell back down. Was she spellbound? He didn't know. He didn't want to know. If she was, he would have to find someone or something to help her out. "Just, rest here. I'll find someone to help you." He walked away from the shadows and back to the dark trail of the forest. Notesong slowly opened her eyes finding Howlheart gone. She couldn't do anything about it, she must stay here until he comes back. Besides, no one's going to hurt her anyways... I hope. Chapter Eight It wasn't long before Howlheart came back with a cat in his mouth. Notesong was finally awake looking at Howlheart. "Who's that?!" She said,"Who is he? Howlheart?! Please tell me!" "Come." He only said. "No! Don't kill him!" She said. "WE DON'T HAVE A CHOICE NOTESONG!" He yelled. He bended down, and opened his claws."Cats never live forever..." He said and without another word, he grabbed the kit by the neck, and pressed his claws into the kit's left side. "No!" Her eyes brightened. "I have no choice." He replied. "Y--You monster!" She found the tentacles again, and the figure reappeared. "Congratss... Howl." He said,"Follow me." And Howlheart smiled at Notesong and ran after the figure. "I CAN'T TAKE THIS!" She ran from the forest to a rocky meadow with no trees, no flowers, just isolated. She sat down and cried. "This can't be happening! This just can't!" She looked up at the sky with tears rolling down her eyes."I'm done! I'm sick of this life!" And she looked back at the forest, and stood there, turning her head back to the mountains ahead. "He promised!" She screamed as her voice echoed through the mountains,"He just LIED!" She thought he didn't care about each other anymore. Their relationship was over, she moved on. She padded through the isolation of the rocky mountains. She grew mad as the thoughts of Howlheart swam in her head. She would throw herself against the sides of the paths and scratch them, as if she wanted to yell over the mountains so he could hear her voice. And that's what she did. When she reached the top of the peak she headed towards, she screamed out "YOU LIAR!!!! YOU LIED TO ME AND TO EVERYONE ELSE!" She yelled so loud she almost lost her breath. But, how did she know if he was hearing her? She slid down the mountains to a point where she had to stop sliding. Her paws were on fire and needed to wait for more sliding. It wasn't long before she arrived dow to the bottom. She looked around, and saw Lostsoul once again, staring up through the cracks of the trees. "Hello... Notesong." He said, not even looking at her. "Hi?" She replied. "What are you doing in these parts of the forest alone?" He asked as he turned to look at her. His ears pointed up at the cracks still. "Just... Ummm... Running away." She sighed as she stepped a bit closer to Lostsoul. "Where are you headed to? I might be able to help you navigate to there." He turned away and got up onto his paws. "Anywhere else... Anywhere else but here." She continued,"This place creeps me out." "Follow me then." He ran deeper until he was not seen. She looked up the crack in the trees, a web reflected in the sunlight. It looked as if the web had letters. She whisperded to herself and pointed at the web "E.... L.... E.... M.... E... N.... T.... S..." She said to herself. "Elements? But why would a spider spin its web into letters like these?" "HEY!" Lostsoul's bright yellow eyes glowed in the darkness of the forest," You coming?!" "Yeah..." And she followed behind Lostsoul. They ended up finding a glowing stone picture, layed on the floor. It was covered in vines and mossy stone. They both looked at each other, and jumped down the steps towards it. Notesong slowly looked around while Lostsoul just kept babbling to himself," This is not good. Not... Not good." She heard him complaining and moved away from him. As she looked through the stone ruins, she halted for a minute. Blinking at the stars for about a second, then looking back down. She was absolutely terrified, but very excited at the same time. She pounced on Lostsoul and jumped back off. "Scared? Excited?" Lostsoul gave Notesong a smirk, then turned around to trot away.